Door seals



M. L. MILES DOOR SEALS Oct. 4, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 1, 1956INVENTOR. 'n L. M/7e5 Me/v/ BY W ll -ll M. L. MILES DOOR SEALS Oct. 4,1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 1, 1956 INVENTOR. Me/v/h L. M/'/es M.L. MILES DOOR SEALS Oct. 4, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 3' Filed Oct. 1, 1956INVENTOR. MELWN Lv MILES M. L. MILES Oct. 4, 1960 DOOR SEALS 4Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. 1, 1956 INVENTOR. MELVIN L. MILES UnitedStates Patent O DOOR SEALS Melvin L. Miles, 2300 Carlton Way, OklahomaCity, Okla.

Filed Oct. 1, 1956, Ser. No. 613,336

1 Claim. (Cl. 20-69) This invention relates to improvements inweatherstripping and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, toWeatherstripping utilized with overhead garage doors, frames, or thelike. This application is a continuation-in-part of my co-pendingapplication Serial No. 460,897, filed October 7, 1954, and entitled DoorSeals, which has now become abandoned.

-It is well known that the modern overhead garage doors do not fitadjacent a garage door frame with sufficient force to provide aweatherproof closure. Any inefficient fit between the door and the framewill permit cold air, rain, and the like to enter the garage. It will beapparent that a garage having weatherproof closure will provide agreater utilization of the facilities available therein. Although thereare presently available devices for weatherproofing a garage door, ithas been found in practical use that they are unsatisfactory in that thepressure required to properly seal the door against the frame willdistort the sealing material thereby causing an inefficient seal.pressure of the door against the seal also often forces the sealingmaterial to loosen and pull away from the .door frame thereby renderingit inefficient.

The present invention contemplates a Weatherstripping which may beeasily and economically secured to a garage .door and frame to provide asubstantially weatherproof .closure around the entire perimeter of thedoor. The novel sealing means is firmly secured to the door frame .ordoor in a manner to substantially preclude any pos- .sibility of thesealing material pulling away from the holding device, thus assuring aneflicient, long lasting seal around an overhead garage door or the like.

It is, therefore, an important object of this invention to provide aseal for overhead garage doors and the like to insure a substantialweatherproofing thereof.

It is another object of this invention to provide a weatherproofing sealfor overhead garage doors and the like designed to substantiallypreclude any distortion or loosening from the seal holding deviceutilized therewith.

It is a further object-of this invention to provide a weatherproofingseal for overhead garage doors and the like which may be easily andeconomically applied to garage doors and door frames.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide aweatherproofing seal for overhead garage doors and the like which is ofa simple and economical construction.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be evident from thefollowing detailed description, read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, which illus trate my invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of the novel weatherstrippingseal.

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the novel sealing means.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view of a garage door frame embodyingthe invention.

The stress and strain of the Y Figure 5 is a front elevational view of acorner of a door frame embodying the invention having a seal unit shownthereon and exaggerated for purposes of better illustration.

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view of the bottom of a garage doorembodying the invention.

Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view of the garage door and door frame.

Figure 8 is a front elevational view of a garage depicting the relativeenvironment of the novel sealing means.

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a modification of the seal holdingmember.

Figure 10 is a perspective view of the sealing member secured within theseal holding member shown in Fig. 9.

Figure 11 is a perspective view of yet another method of securing theseal member to a door or frame member.

Figure 12 is a sectional elevational view of a portion of a door memberhaving the novel seal member disposed thereon.

Figure 13 is a transverse sectional view of a door frame member havingthe novel seal member secured thereon.

Figure 14 is a sectional view of the seal member disposed within amodified seal holding member.

Figure 15 is a perspective view of still another means for securing theseal member to a door or frame member.

Figure 16 is a sectional view showing the seal member secured to thebottom of a door by means of a modified holding frame member.

Figure 17 is a perspective view of the seal member disposed in yetanother modification of the holding member.

Figure 18 is a sectional view of yet another form of sealing member.

Figure 19 is an end view of another modification of the seal holdingframe member.

Figure 20 is a perspective view of the seal member secured withinanother modified seal holding member.

Referring to the drawings in detail, reference character -10 refers ingeneral to an assembled weatherproofing seal strip comprising asubstantially channel shaped bracket 12, a sealing strip 14 ofsubstantially square configuration, a layer of plastic tape 16 or thelike and a plurality of nails 18. The bracket 12 is provided with a pairof upstanding flanges 2'0 and '22. The flange 22 extends upward furtherthan the flange 20 for a purpose as will hereinafter be set forth. Theflanges 20 and 22 are provided with a plurality of apertures 24 and 26,respectively, disposed in substantial alignment to receive the nails 18.The seal '14 is preferably made of sponge rubber or the like, but notlimited thereto, and is constructed of the proper complementarydimensions to fit snugly in the bracket .12 between the flanges 20 and22. The seal 14 protrudes beyond both ends of the bracket v12 asuflicient amount to provide an effective seal at the joint as two ormore of the assembled weatherproofing strips 10 are disposed in tandemrelation as will be hereinafter set forth.

The plastic tape -16 is preferably provided with one adhesive side inorder to permit the tape to be easily and securely disposed on the topside (Figs. 1 and 2) of the seal strip 14. In practical use it has beenfound that the plastic tape 16 greatly improves the friction and scalingproperties of the weatherproofing strip 10, although it will be apparentthat an eflicient sealing may be obtained without the use of the tape16.

A door stop 28 (Fig. 4) is preferably made of wood or the like, but notlimited thereto, and is utilized in complement to the weatherproofingstrip 10 in a manner as will hereinafter be set forth. The stop 28 is ofsubstantially rectangular configuration having at least one 3 bevelededge 30. The beveled edge 30 creates a dead air space 31 (Fig. 3)between the stop 28 and the sealing means 10.

Operation In order to install the weatherproofing seal 10 to be utilizedwith an overhead garage door, a groove 32 (Fig. 3) may be provided forthe entire inner perimeter of a standard door jamb or frame 34. Asimilar groove 36 (Figs. 6 and 7) may be provided along the bottom of anormal overhead garage door 38. The grooves 32 and 36 are of the properdimensions to receive the bracket 12 with the longer flange 22 adjacentthe side faces 40 and 42, respectively, of the grooves 32 and 36. Theseal strip 14 is forced into position within the bracket 12 prior to thedisposition of the bracket 12 within the grooves 32 and 36. The bracket12 is disposed Within the grooves and the nails 18 are driven in anywell known manner through the apertures 24, the seal 14, and theaperture 26 and into the frame 34 or door 38. As previously set forth,the seal 14 extends slightly beyond the ends of the bracket 12. Thedisposition of one bracket 1'2 adjacent another bracket 12 in end to endtandem relation causes a compression of the abutting seals 14 to assurea substantially leak-proof and weatherproof joint.

Referring to Fig. 5, it will be noted that a similar compression of theseal 14 occurs at a corner 44 of the door frame 34 as the end 46 of onestrip 10 abuts the end 48 of another strip 10 in a perpendicularrelation. Similarly, the end 48 abuts the frame 34 to assure aneflicient sealing action at the corner 44. Under practical conditions ithas been found satisfactory to manufacture the strips 10 in seven andeight foot lengths to be economically utilized with the standarddimensions of present day garage doors. It will be apparent, however,that any desired length may be utilized to obtain an eflec-tiveWeatherproofing of the door and frame. As previously noted, the flange20 does not extend upwardly as far as the flange 22, thereby permittingan adequate space for outward bulging or expansion of the seal under acompressed condition along the inner edge of the weatherstripped doorand providing a better seal.

The door stop 28 is placed adjacent the frame 34 or door 38 and thestrip 10 as clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 6 is secured thereto by anysuitable means (not shown). The beveled corner 30 is disposed in theproximity of the strip 10, thereby providing a dead air space 31 actingas an additional sealing factor to enhance the sealing qualities of thestrip 10. The stop 28 extends any desired distance beyond the frame 34as determined by the positioning of the stop against the frame to permitproper contact of the door 38 against the seal 14. The stop 28 alsoextends below the bottom of the door 38 in a similar manner to permitproper sealing contact of the ground (not shown) against the door 38.The environment drawing (Fig. 8) clearly shows the disposition of theweatherproofing seal 10 in dotted lines extending around the entireclosure of the garage door 36 in the garage 50.

Modified seal holding members Referring to Fig. 9, it has been found tobe practical and economical to eliminate the necessity of providing agroove on the door frame itself for receiving the seal member 10. Asealing holding member, generally indicated at 51 in Figs. 9, l and 13may be provided for securing the sealing member to the ,door framemember 34. The seal holding member 51 comprises a substantiallyrectangular member 52, preferably constructed of wood, but not limitedthereto, which is suitably rigidly secured to a stop member 54. The stopmember 54 is preferably similar to the stop member 28 and is providedwith at least one beveled edge portion 56 for creating a dead air space58 between the stop member 54 and the sealing member 10. The rectangularmember 52 is provided with at least one longitudinally flat surface 60(Fig. 9) which is positioned slightly below the beveled edge portion 56of the stop member 54. Thus, the channel member 12 may be disposed onthe surface 60 in order that the sealing member 10 may be nailedadjacent the stop member 54 in the same manner as hereinbefore set forthin securing the sealing member 10 adjacent the door frame member 34. Theseal holding member 51 may then be secured adjacent the door frame 34 bynailing, or the like, and in such a manner that the sealing means 10extends slightly beyond the door frame 34 for contacting the garage doormember 38 as hereinbefore set forth. It will be apparent that it issimpler and more economical to construct the seal holding member 51 forsecuring the sealing means to the door frame 34 than it is to provide alongitudinal groove along the edge of the door frame 34 itself.

When the seal holding member 51 is utilized for securing the sealingmeans 10 to the door frame34, it is preferable to secure the sealingmember 10 to the bottom of the garage door 38 in the manner shown inFigs. 11 and 12. The sealing member 19 may be nailed to a rectangularmember 62 in the same manner as hereinbefore set forth in securing thesealing member 10 to the door frame 34. The member 62 is preferablyconstructed of WOOd, but not limited thereto, and may be nailed, orsuitably rigidly secured to the bottom edge 64 of the garage door 38.This eliminates the necessity of providing a groove along the lower edgeof the garage door, and thereby greatly simplifies the installation ofthe sealing member 10. The stop member 54 is preferably nailed, or thelike, to the garage door in order that the beveled edge 56 of the stopmember 54 will provide a dead air space 68 between the stop member 54and the seal member 10, thereby improving the sealing qualities of theseal 10.

Still another method of securing the sealing means 10 to the bottom edge64 of the garage door 38 is shown in Fig. 14. A stop member 70 ofsubstantially the same configuration as the stop member 54 is providedwith at least one beveled edge portion 72. A longitudinal groove 74 isprovided throughout the length of the stop member 70 adjacent thebeveled edge portion 72, as clearly shown in Fig. 14. The channel member12 of the sealing means 10 may be disposed in the groove 74 and nailedtherein in the manner hereinbefore set forth. The stop member 71) maythen be nailed, or the like, to the lower portion of the door 38 in sucha manner that the sealing member 10 is disposed adjacent the lower edge64 of the door as clearly shown in the drawings.

For the purposes of producing large quantities of the sealing members 10and holding means therefor, it has been found that a metallic holder,preferably made of aluminum or the like, but not limited thereto, may bemanufactured at a minimum cost to provide for an economical sealingmeans. For example, an adjustable seal holding member, generallyindicated at 76 in Fig. 15, has proven to be very satisfactory forinstalling the sealing member 10 on both the door frame members and dooritself. The seal holding member 76 comprises a substantially L-shaped orangle member 78 which is adjustably secured to a second angle member 80.One leg 82 of the member 78 is preferably disposed adjacent one legmember 84 of the member 80. The leg members 82 and 84 are preferablyadjustably secured together by means of cooperating slotted portions 86and bolt members 88. Thus, the member 82 may be adjusted transverselywith respect to the member 80. The sealing means 10 may be nailedagainst a wooden strip member 90 in the same manner as hereinbefore setforth in securing the seal to a door frame. The wooden strip member 90may then be secured to the second leg member 91 of the angle member 78by means of suitable screw members 92 in such a manner that the stripmember 90 is disposed adjacent the leg member 82 and the seal member 10is spaced therefrom and as clearly shown inFig. 15. The second legmember 94 of the angle member is preferably provided with a plurality ofspaced apertures 96 to receive nails (not sho n), or the like, forsecuring the seal holding member 76 to a garage door or door frame, asdesired.

The seal holding member 76 is preferably utilized for securingWeatherstripping around the periphery of a solid type of pivotaloverhead garage door. It has been found in practical applications thathis preferable to secure the seal holding member 76 having the sealmeans disposed therein directly to the door frame adjacent the garagedoor from the pivot point (not shown) of the garage door and extendingdownwardly to the garage floor. The seal holding member 76 is preferablysecured along the bottom edge 64 of the door itself in all instances. Itis also preferable to secure the-seal holding member 76 to the dooritself from the pivot-point of the door upward to the top thereof, andalong the top edge of the door, thereby providing a sealing member 10around the entire periphery of the door for an eflicient sealingthereof.

Many of the present day garage doors are called Hollywood overheaddoors, and are constructed from material approximately one-half inchthick. This type of door is indicated at 100 in Fig. 16. The sealingmeans 10 of the present invention may be secured to the lower edgeportion 102 of the door 100 by means of a bracket or channel member 104.The bracket member 104 is preferably comprised of two membersconstructed of aluminum, or the like, but not limited thereto. A pair offlange members 106 and 108 are spaced apart for receiving the door 100therebetween, as clearly shown in Fig. 16. The flange member 106 ispreferably bent or suitably formed at the lowermost portion thereof toprovide a channel shaped portion 110. The channel shaped portion 110 issubstantially the same configuration as the channel member 12, and isadapted for receiving the sealing member 10 in the same manner. Thechannel shaped portion 110 may be provided with an outwardly extendingor angular flange member 112 for receiving the flange member '108, asclearly shown in Fig. 16. The flange member 108 may be bent as at 109 toencircle a portion of the angular flange 1:12 for seeming the flange 108to the channel portion 110. The flange members 106 and 108 may berigidly secured to the opposite faces of the door 100 in any suitablemanner, such as screws, or the like (not shown). Thus, the seal member10 may be secured along the lower edge 102 of the door 100 for aneflicient sealing between the door and the garage floor (not shown).

' The flange member 106 may also be utilized for securing the seal means10 to the door frame or side edges and top edge of the ganage door.However, an anmilar flange member 114 (Fig. 18) is preferably utilizedin lieu of the flange member 108. The member 114 is provided with anoutwardly flared portion 116 for encircling the angular flange 112 tosecure the member 114 to the member 106. The member 114 extends upwardlyand rearwardly and terminates in an upwardly directed flange member 118which is substantially in alignment with the flange member 106. Aplurality of apertures (not shown) may be spaced longitudinal-1y alongthe upwardly directed flange 118 for receiving nails or screws, or thelike (not shown) for securing the angular member 114 to the door frame,or garage door, as desired. Of course, the flange member 106 ispreferably similarly secured to the door or frame member. In this mannerthe seal member 10 may be secured around the entire periphery of thegarage door for the sealing thereof, as hereinbefore set forth.

Figure discloses a modified form of the members shown in Fig. 18. Anangular flange member 120 of a similar configuration as the member 114is provided with an upstanding flange portion 122 having a. plurality ofapertures 124 spaced thereon. Suitable screw, or the like (not shown)may be utilized in cooperation with the apertures 124 for securing themember 120 to a door frame or garage door, as desired. An angle member126 is provided with opposed outwardly extending flange members 128 and130. The flange member 128 extends upwardly toward the flange member122, and is in substantial alignment therewith. A plurality of spacedapertures 132 are provided on the flange member 128 for facilitating thesecuring of the member "126 to the garage door or door frame member. Theflange member is secured to the member 120 in any suitable manner, suchas by the bent member 134 of the member 120', which encircles thelowermost portion of the flange 130. The seal member 10, including thechannel member 12 therefor, is preferably nailed, as hereinbefore setforth, to a wooden strip member 136 which is similar to the strip member90. The wooden strip member 136 may in turn be suitably secured bynailing or the like (not shown) to the member 126 in such a manner thatthe seal member 10 extends downwardly from the member 126, as viewed inFig. 20. In this manner, the seal member may be secured around the doorframe, or garage door for sealing therebetween, as hereinbefore setforth.

Figures 17 and 19, however, disclose the preferred embodiment of theinvention, and have pr-oven to be the most economical type ofconstruction for the novel Weatherstripping of the invention.Furthermore, this type of construction provides for a greatly simplifiedmethod of installation of the Weatherstripping material on a door ordoor frame. A bracket member 138 is provided which securely holds thesealing member 10 and which may be easily nailed or screwed, or thelike, into the door or door frame. The member 138 is preferablyconstructed of aluminum, or the like, but not limited thereto, andcomprises an upwardly directed angular member 140 having an upwardlyextending sub stantially straight flange member 142. The member 142 isprovided with a plurality of spaced apertures 144 which receive suitablenails, or the like (not shown) for securing the entire member *138 andthe sealing member 10 to the garage door or door frame, as desired. Themember 138 is preferably formed in any suitable manner (not shown) suchas bending to provide a substantially channel shaped member 146 at thelower portion thereof as viewed in Fig. 17. The channel member 146 issimilar to the channel member 12, however, the member 146 is preferablyprovided with a pair of opposed inwardly directed lug members 148 and150. The sponge rubber material of the sealing means 10 is preferablyprovided with longitudinal slits or grooves: (not shown) which extendthroughout the length thereof in alignment with each of the lug members'148 and 150. These groove portions facilitate the installation of thesponge rubber material within the channel member *146, and the lugmembers 148 and 150 hold the sealing material securely on the bracketmember 138. Thus, it is not necessary to nail the seal member 10 to thechannel member 146. The entire sealing unit 10 and bracket member 138may thus be easily installed on a garage door or door frame by simplysecuring the bracket member 138 to the door or frame by nailing, or thelike, as hereinbefore set forth.

The bracket member 152 depicted in Fig. 19 is substantially similar tothe bracket member 138. However, the construction of the bracket member152 is somewhat more economical and utilizes slightly less material inthe construction thereof. The bracket member 152 may be constructed byan extrusion process at a substantially reduced cost. It will beapparent that this is of considerable advantage in the construction ormanufacture of large quantities of the sealing members. The bracket 152is provided with a channel shaped member 154 similar to the bracket 146.A pair of oppositely disposed inwardly directed lug members 156 and 158are provided on the channel member 154. However, it will be noted thatthe lug member 158 terminates the free end of the channel member 1541,thereby eliminating a substantial POI-lion of the downwardly extendingportions of the channel member 154 It has been found that thisconstruction securely holds the seal member within the channel member154, yet is substantially more economical in construction than the othertypes of bracket members disclosed herein. Furthermore, in the event thesponge rubber material of the sealing member 10 becomes worn orinefficient for any reason, an additional strip of the rubber may beprovided with longitudinal grooves for replacing the worn seal member.provides for an economic replacement of ineflicient sealing members.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the present inventionprovides an effective, long lasting, substantially leak-proof .seal tobe utilized with overhead garage doors and the like. The novel sealingmeans is of economical construction and may be easily and quicklyinstalled on the present day overhead garage door and frame to provide asubstantially weatherproof garage, thus providing a greater utilizationthereof.

Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts asheretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, itbeing understood that any modification in the precise embodiment of theinvention may be made within the scope of the following claim withoutdeparting 'firom the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

In combination with an overhead garage door and garage door frame, aweather strip cooperating therewith and comprising a substantiallychannel shaped holding bracket, 21 pair of upstanding flanges providedon the bracket, said flanges being provided with a plurality of alignedapertures, a resilient sealing member dis; posed on said bracket betweensaid upstanding flanges, means extending through the apertures forsecuring the sealing member on the bracket, one of said flanges being ofgreater height than the other and also extending outwardly at an angle[from the sealing member, a flange member-positioned on the longerbracket flange parallel to said flanges andhaving an outward extendingportion on one end thereof adapted to encircle the outwardly extendingend of the longer flange, said flange member in conjunction with, thelonger bracket flange defining an insulating dead air space between theflanges and the sealing member, and a layer of plastic tape secured to.the sealing surface ofthe sealing member. 7

References Cited in thefile of this patent UNITED STATESPATENTS 319,265,Jones June 2, 1885 1,252,448 Kees 'Jan. 8, 1918 1,885,922 Kunzet a1.Nov. 1, 1932 1,895,064 Axe Jan. 24, 1933 2,428,731 Abrams Oct. 7, 19472,552,752 Venditty May 15, 1951 2,611,937 Kendrick Sept. 30, 19522,663,057 Uphoff Dec. 22, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 899,953 Germany Feb. 1,1954

